Saudi authorities said on Tuesday that missile and drone attacks by Ansar Allah (the Houthis) wounded 73 civilians and sparked fires across several sites in southern Saudi Arabia, including King Khalid Air Base, Abha International Airport and facilities belonging to oil company Aramco in Abha and Jazan.
The attacks came as fighting in Yemen escalated to its fiercest in years after Ansar Allah launched a major ground assault last Thursday alongside missile and drone strikes on fronts along Yemen’s western Red Sea coast and around Taiz, in an attempt to advance toward areas held by government forces near the strategic Bab Al-Mandeb Strait.
Operations at energy facilities were partially and temporarily suspended following the attacks, the Saudi Energy Ministry said, while firefighting and emergency teams worked to contain the fires and assess the damage. It said authorities were taking the necessary measures to ensure the safety of facilities and workers and maintain operations.
The Saudi-led Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen, which has been operating since 2015, vowed to respond “firmly” to the attacks. Its spokesman, Turki Al-Malki, said on X that the joint forces command would take the operational measures needed to “deter this Terrorist Militia and resolutely confront its hostile approach.”
The Saudi Foreign Ministry affirmed its “legitimate right to take all necessary measures to defend its sovereignty,” and called for an immediate halt to what it described as “all forms of Houthi escalation,” including threats to maritime security.
Ansar Allah military spokesman, Yahya Saree, meanwhile announced a “wide-ranging military operation” targeting Aramco facilities in Abha, Najran, and Jazan, as well as the Khamis Mushait air base, with tens of ballistic missiles and drones.
In a statement posted on X, Saree said the attacks “achieved precise and direct hits,” threatening heavier and wider strikes against the “Saudi enemy.” He said the group would continue targeting the Saudi interior until what he described as “the aggression and siege” on Yemen ended.
According to AFP, the recent escalation in fighting has killed more than 300 fighters and several civilians, while the clashes have forced families to flee areas near the front lines.
Yemen’s government forces, backed by Riyadh, said they had made advances on several fronts and carried out 13 airstrikes on Houthi positions in Al Bayda province, along with strikes in Marib and other areas.
Egypt’s Foreign Ministry, for its part, condemned the Houthi attacks on southern Saudi Arabia “in the strongest terms,” calling them “a dangerous escalation, a violation of the Kingdom’s sovereignty and a threat to the security and safety of its people.” Cairo expressed full solidarity with Riyadh and stated that the Kingdom’s security was “an integral part of Egyptian and Arab national security.”
Jassem Mohamed Albudaiwi, secretary-general of the Gulf Cooperation Council, also unequivocally condemned the Houthi attacks in southern Saudi Arabia, saying the repeated attacks revealed what he described as the group’s “pernicious intentions.”
